Beyond the Infinite – Short Film Studio Model Work by Charles Adams, Rick Ingalsbe and Crew

Famed miniature artists Charles Adams and Rick Ingalsbe recently joined the crew of the upcoming short film Beyond the Infinite. The task of creating the main ship, and turning it into a studio filming model is up to them.. and as you can see they are doing amazing work!

Here is a link to the Kickstarter Page for the film to find out more information…

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1282316546/c-299792-km-s/posts

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In April I responded to a post looking for help building a model
spaceship for a short film [LINK]. Since the project was in New York,
I referred this to my friend Rick Ingalsbe who lives in that state.
After some discussion, we decided I would build the model and he
would paint it. A budget was set and design work commenced.

We treated this project as special because in this era of computer
effects spaceships are nearly always built as CG models. It seemed
the days of starship miniatures in the film industry were long gone.
After this project is done, who knows when we might get to see
another physical model being filmed flying through space.

The producers were really easy to work with and the design process
took about 6 weeks. In that time, I made a detailed computer mockup
to help me prepare precise patterns for constructing the model.

There were some serious design challenges for this spaceship. Four of
the main the engines (there are seven of them in total) are
positioned at 12 O’Clock, 3 O’Clock, 6 O’Clock, and 9 O’Clock on a
large ring structure. This meant any mounting points (called “pick
points”) aft of these engines would get illuminated by their lights.
Mounting the model for filming would be difficult.

As if that was not enough, during the film the ship was to separate
into different stages. This meant they needed three separate sections
that could be filmed either separately or together. As a result, I
would not be able to make one continuous armature to support the
entire model. Wiring for each stage would also have to be separate.

The final challenge was the overall size of the miniature. Because
they had limited space available for filming, they wanted a model no
longer than about four feet. For a design this complex, that proved
to be the most serious challenge. There were numerous lighting
effects and all kinds of wires and fiber optics that needed to be
crammed inside a very small space. In the end, we felt more like
surgeons than model builders!

Construction commenced June 8. I enlisted the help of two good
friends who volunteered to help with the project. Little did we know
what we were getting ourselves into. If this model had been ten feet
long, it would have been much easier to build.

More than six weeks later, we have most of it completed and we are
now in the final detailing stage. My crew stuck with me through the
entire process, frustrations and all. The model would never have
reached this stage of completion so quickly had it not been for their
extreme dedication and tireless effort.

I’m very pleased with how the model has turned out. It’s taken a lot
more time than originally anticipated. But, in the end, it looks like
we may have something very special. I am proud of what we have
accomplished so far, and I look forward to getting this ship in its
crate and on the way to New York for final painting very soon.

Once again, I must give my sincere thanks to my faithful crew,
Richard Lindstrom (aka “Richard2001”) and Preston Kabinoff for all
their hard work on this project.

Charles Adams

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